La Trenda lives with 4 dogs, all rescues who came to her with special needs. She spent 8 years volunteering and working for various shelters and rescues. She now spends most of her time going to dog training classes and studying training and behavior books to learn about better ways to connect with her dogs.

Note: This is an mySA.com City Brights Blog. These blogs are not written or edited by mySA or the San Antonio Express-News. The authors are solely responsible for the content.

Denver the Guilty Dog

By now, I think most dog lovers have seen Denver the Guilty Dog. His youtube video has over 6 million hits; he has his own facebook page; and he has been on Good Morning America.

Behaviorists, trainers, pet parents might argue whether or not Denver actually feels guilty, but as behaviorist Jean Donaldson would say, no one really knows what’s going on in a dog’s mind.

Something that is observable is Denver’s calming signals. The other dog was also displaying calming signals to her dad. Although not as noticeable as Denver’s appeasement actions, the other dog was licking her lips and turning her head.

Trainer, behaviorist, and author Turid Rugaas has studied dogs for years and has discovered a number of calming signals that dogs display to avoid conflict.

According to Rugaas: “Dogs, being flock animals, have a language for communication with each other. Canine language in general consists of a large variety of signals using body, face, ears, tail, sounds, movement and expression…If we study the signals dogs use with each other and use them ourselves, we increase our ability to communicate with our dogs”

When a dog tucks his/her tail or shakes or cries, most humans understand that the dog is stressed, but humans can miss many subtle cues that indicate a dog is scared or trying to appease her human parents or another dog: Yawning, lip licking, nose licking, blinking, scratching at the ground, scratching themselves, head turning, freezing, walking slowly, slow movements, etc… can all be calming signals.

Says Rugass: “Have you ever noticed your dog turning his head when you try to take a photo of him? He’s telling you that he feels uncomfortable with this”

Imagine this scenario: You are out walking your dog. She pulls because she sees something interesting. You yank her leash and she starts sniffing and scratching at the ground. You yank her harder and she continues to scratch and sniff. Most pet parents would assume that the dog is being defiant. What is more likely is that your dog is trying to calm you down.

Another example: Your dog gets a little rowdy at the dog park. You call your dog off by yelling at him: “Rudy, get over here right now!” Your dog slowly approaches you. You get angrier and yell louder, the dog slows his pace even more. You yell louder and now your dog is almost crawling towards you. Your dog is trying to appease you by moving more slowly.

For more information on dog calming signals, check out Rugaas’s Book: On Talking Terms With Dogs: Calming Signals. It’s under 80 pages with lots of pictures and can be easily read in one sitting.
Then go out to walking trails and dog parks and watch dogs and their parents. Watch how dogs respond to their parents when the pet parent is a little harsh. Watch how dogs respond to each other.

Then watch your own doggie. Are there particular times when your dog yawns a little bit more, sniffs the ground a little bit more?

If your dog is a little wound up, try blinking or yawning at him. She is more likely to understand a yawn as opposed to “stop that!”

I yawn a lot when I’m leashing up the kids for walks. I’m working hard on loose leash walking and leaving the house in an excited state doesn’t help matters at all.